1. Field
The present disclosure relates generally to displaying aircraft information and, in particular, to a method and apparatus for defining pages for information about an aircraft.
2. Background
Aircraft include many different systems that operate during the flight of an aircraft. For example, an aircraft may have a computer system, a hydraulic system, a fuel system, an environmental system, and/or other suitable systems. These different systems generate information during the operation of the aircraft. This type of information often changes during the operation of the aircraft. For example, the airspeed of an aircraft will change during different phases of flight of the aircraft. As another example, as an aircraft operates, fuel consumption and the level of fuel in the aircraft also changes. This type of information that changes during the operation of the aircraft may be referred to as dynamic information.
This dynamic information is displayed on a display system for the computer system on the aircraft. For example, the computer system may display a primary flight display, a multifunction display, an engine indicating and crew alerting system (EICAS) display, and/or other suitable types of displays on the display system. Information about the operation of different systems on aircraft is often displayed on the multifunction display.
These different displays are part of a user interface that allows an operator to see dynamic information about the different systems. Typically, each of these displays is displayed on a different display device from other displays.
In other words, each display for a particular system in the aircraft may be displayed on its own display device. For example, one display on a first display device may provide information about the environmental system, while another display on a second display device provides information about engine operation.
An operator may view this dynamic information to monitor the operation of the different systems in the aircraft. Further, the operator may interact with the displays to store information for later use. For example, if the revolutions per minute or temperature values are greater than desired, an alert may occur. The display system may have a functionality that allows the operator to store these values at the time the alert occurs for future review in maintenance after the flight of the aircraft.
When a limited number of display devices are available in a display system for displaying different information about the aircraft, an operator may view the information for different systems by selecting the displays that the operator wants to view. Moving from one display to another display, however, may sometimes be more time consuming than desired.
Thus, it would be advantageous to have a method and apparatus that takes into account at least some of the issues discussed above, as well as possibly other issues.